▷ Swamp snails in the aquarium | All information and details

Data sheet of mud snails

German name:
Swamp Lid Snails

Scientific name:
Viviparus viviparus

Aquarium

Length:
at least 60 x 30 cm

Contents:
from 60 liters

water values

Temperature:
4 to 25°C

pH:
6.2 to 7.8

GH:
until 22

CH:
3+

Behave

Breed:
viviparous, separating sexes

Lining:
omnivorealgae, plankton, autumn leaves, vegetable chips, Fish food, snail food

Behave:
peaceful, calm

age expectation:
Up to 12 years

Peterwchen, Cipangopaludina chinensis, CC BY-SA 4.0

The snails from the Viviparidae family of the Architaenioglossa order are distributed throughout Europe. They live in slow-flowing or stagnant waters on the bottom, in the shore area.

In the aquarium

In the tank, they only climb up the panes when they are overgrown with algae. Aquatic plants are not eaten and not dug up. There may be slight damage to the leaves when the animals scrape off algae there with their rough tongues.
The snails value clean water, otherwise they make no great claims. The temperature should be in summer not over 25 degrees climb.

The animals use the oxygen dissolved in the water to breathe. As the temperature increases, the oxygen content decreases.
The pool does not need to be heated. If the temperatures drop in winter, this increases the well-being of the snails. This corresponds to the natural change of seasons.

Look

Their shell is up to 5 cm long, making them one of the largest freshwater snails in Central Europe.

The shell is squat, has a blunt tip and 4 to 5 whorls arranged like a top. The lid with which you can close the housing is eponymous. A safe protection in winter or against predators.

On the light greenish to brown ground color, three characteristic reddish-brown bands run parallel to the whorls of the shell.
The foot is grey.

Feed & Nutrition

When feeding are mud snails not picky. Crawling on the ground, pieces of wood or stones, graze on algae growth. Partially filter plankton and floating algae out of the water.

This peculiarity makes them popular with aquarists and garden pond owners, because this is how the snails keep the water clean.
In the pond, the undemanding animals remove leftover food, dead plants or carrion.
In the aquarium they like to take on vegetable chips, some autumn leaves or fish food that has fallen to the bottom.

breeding and reproduction

Bog snails are among the few snails that give birth to their young alive.

Another special feature is that the animals segregated sex are. The Males are easily identified by their shorter right antennae, it contains the copulatory organ. Females have antennae of equal length.

The fertilized eggs develop in the ovary of the female. Usually there are several young in different stages of development. When the embryonic development is complete, the finished young snail is born individually. She is born complete with case and immediately goes their own way.

At birth, the young are 0.5 to 1 cm.

A female can give birth to 30 to 60 young snails each year.

socialization

A socialization with mussels is easy. Small crabs are also conceivable as roommates, large crab species could crack the shells.

Socialization with fish:

Basically one Socialization with fish possible. You shouldn’t be too curious or pushy, mud snails don’t like that. Larger fish that eat shellfish are not suitable.

Socialization with shrimp:

Small shrimp and larger species that don’t eat snails like fan shrimp, can be in the pool. In this case, the snails need areas with little flow.

Socialization with other snail species in the aquarium:

they should not with Marisa snails to be socialized. The species is too dominant and a food competitor. She would crowd out Viviparus. Living together with other snails is possible.

Other questions: